AMD's RDNA 3 Will Support DisplayPort 2.0 and UHBR20

AMD's upcoming Radeon RX 7000-series GPUs featuring the RDNA 3 architecture will be among the first to support full implementation of DisplayPort 2.0, which means support of up to 16K resolutions with a 60Hz refresh rate, as well as HDMI 2.1 48G, which means support of up to 10K resolutions with a 100Hz refresh rate

Linux patch discovered by @Kepler_L2 shows that at least some of AMD's next-generation Radeon RX 7000-series graphics processors featuring the RDNA 3 architecture will also feature a revamped Display Controller Next (DCN) engine that supports high data transfer for next-generation display outputs. DisplayPort 2.0's UBHR 13.5 and UHBR 20 transmission modes would likely be supported, enabling raw bandwidth of up to 54 Gbps and 80 Gbps as well as HDMI 2.1 4x12Gbps transmission rate and raw bandwidth of up to 48 Gbps. 

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Row 0 - Cell 0 Transmission ModeRaw BandwidthMaximum Display CapabilityCable Marking
DisplayPort 1.3/1.4HBR332.4 Gbps8Kp30 without DSCHBR3
DisplayPort 2.0UHBR 1040 Gbps8Kp30 without DSCDP40
DisplayPort 2.0UHBR 13.554 Gbps8Kp60 without DSCDP80
DisplayPort 2.0UHBR 2080 Gbps10Kp60 without DSCDP80

With its Ryzen RX 6000-series 'Rembrandt' APUs, AMD was the first company to partially implement VESA's DisplayPort 2.0 interface with UHRB 10 mode (10 Gbps per lane), which is enough to handle an 8K monitor with 30Hz refresh rate without DSC using a standard passive copper cable. For an APU that will power laptops as well as entry-level desktops, UHBR 10 support may be a good compromise for now, as high-performance interfaces tend to be power hungry (and there are not so many 8K monitors on the market right now) . But for high-end discrete GPUs AMD seems to be prepping a considerably more advanced and future-proof display controller with its next-generation architecture. 

In addition to DisplayPort 2.0 with UHBR 20 support, the new GPUs will also feature HDMI 2.1 4x12Gbps transmission mode (48 Gbps raw bandwidth), which means ability to handle an 8K resolution at 60Hz with HDR and 4:4:4 chroma subsampling and variable refresh rates albeit with DSC 1.2. We do not know whether AMD's next-generation HDMI 2.1 implementation supports Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Quick Frame Transport (QFT) features enabling low latency gaming.

Anton Shilov
Contributing Writer

Anton Shilov is a contributing writer at Tom’s Hardware. Over the past couple of decades, he has covered everything from CPUs and GPUs to supercomputers and from modern process technologies and latest fab tools to high-tech industry trends.